In-Depth Analysis: Larry English

by John (obviousman) on Apr 26, 2009 5:27 AM PDT in NFL Draft Comment 8 comments

Why Was He Picked?: After a night of sleep and a lot of research, I have some theories. The first one involves a three-headed monster of pass rushing LBs. Shawne Merriman is coming off of a devastating knee injury and Shaun Phillips showed last year that while he's still talented he needs Merriman on the other side to take the pressure off of him. Shaun Phillips also showed that while he's talented as the LOLB (going against the RT), he is too small to be effective going against a LT.

If you look at the elite pass-rushers around the league, they're lined up against the Left Tackle position. Merriman, Freeney, Suggs, etc. An elite pass-rusher has to show that he has the skills to keep his level of play high when battling an elite offensive lineman. Phillips did not show that. In this theory, English was drafted to give some rest to Merriman's knee and to provide depth for both OLB positions. This was a move to prevent 2008 from happening again. What was plainly obvious was that the defense died when Merriman left with his knee injury. If that happens again, or if Phillips gets hurt, we now have a backup plan that keeps our defense at a high level.

Leverage is also part of this. If we were going to the negotiating table with Merriman after 2008 and he could say "You don't have anybody else. You need me." then we'd have to give him whatever dollar amount he wanted. Now we can work with him to come to a more reasonable figure.

Another theory, and an interesting one, is that New England was in love with Larry English. There are rumors floating around that they were even trying to move up a few picks to ensure that they got him (so English was moving up the boards secretly). Once the Chargers took him off the board, the Patriots felt there was no other player worthy of a first-round pick and traded out of it. After the first day they still have a gaping hole at OLB that could end up hurting their pass rush in 2009. Supposedly, Belichek viewed English as his own version of Merriman. Now don't you feel a little better that English is a Charger?

Fan's View: Courtesy of Mad.Mike from Red And Black Attack, SB Nation's blog for fans of the Northern Illinois Huskies:

Larry English Scouting Report:

Larry English didn’t just win Defensive POY in the MAC last year, he won the MAC MVP overall for the past two years, the first ever defensive player to accomplish that. The best part is that the Vern Smith Trophy is voted by the coaches, so they have that much respect for Larry English and had to plan accordingly for him in every single game. This past year, he even won the award with a cast on his hand because he played with a few pins in his broken right thumb the entire year. In high school, English played all 4 years at the linebacker position, so dropping back is something he is used to.

Strengths

Larry English has an absolute motor. He is not going to take a single play off during a game. Great overall strength. He is not only good rushing the passer, but I believe he is extremely underrated in stopping the run. Look in the dictionary and he is under the definition of a FOOTBAL PLAYER. Larry has extremely long arms and maintains good leverage on his opponents. Provides great leadership on the field and was team captain the last two years. Was extremely productive even when getting double and triple teamed these past couple years.

Weaknesses

A little on the shorter side at just over 6’2". Will have to go to a team that will be able to find the right fit for English on their defense. Needs to work on agility and played minimal time away from the defensive line in pass coverage. I think Larry is a lot quicker than he is fast. Improved his 40 time since the combine from the 4.8 range to around 4.6 at his pro day to solidify his 1st round status.

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Comments

I am on board with this pick. This is an excellent advertisement for English, and given the reasoning it seems not just interesting but aggressive. I would want that kind of philosophy from my GM every single time. So bring him.

gully

by DanRed on Apr 26, 2009 6:52 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

With how sleazy

the NE organization is, I wouldn’t be surprised if they created “false buzz” about a player in order to screw with other teams. But, the fact that they traded down after that is reassuring though.

I guess I’ll have to trust AJ on this one. I still don’t quite get this pick.

by soulSD on Apr 26, 2009 12:35 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I heard this way way early

Way before the usual lies start coming out.

"I did not invent the wheel, I was the crooked spoke adjacent." - Aesop Rock

by John (obviousman) on Apr 26, 2009 12:43 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think

What kept him from going this high on mocks is that unlike Merriman, maybe English doesn’t project well as a DE, but is perfect for the 3-4 OLB. That limits his value to a lot of teams. Maybe it’s because the Raiders picked so poorly and the Cowboys effectively passed on this draft (as far as potential starters go), but I didn’t hear one peep on ESPN of anyone really criticizing the Chargers. Usually Mel Kiper is the first to criticize teams for not understanding how to work the draft and still get their guys, but I’m going to assume that he was okay with our picks (which, for most analysts, grades essentially hinge on your #1 pick). On the other hand, nobody is praising us. So, this lands somewhere ahead of the Davis/Cason picks where people were skeptical (moreso for Davis) and behind Castillo/Cromartie picks where the Chargers were praised for their boldness. It could just be a quietly solid pick. All the better if it f***s over the Patriots (something tells me they’ll still be fine, though, which is a pity).

Memo to baseball managers: You manufacture runs by NOT making outs, not by making them on purpose.

by Wonko on Apr 26, 2009 11:48 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Agreed

Way too small to be a defensive end in the NFL I think. I think it’s a combination of that and him going to a MAC school (which, it’s a shame, is still looked at less than other conferences).

I’m surprised at the lack of bashing of the Chargers for this pick, but right now I think it’s almost a case of “Well, we didn’t do a lot of research on the guy….and AJ is usually right about these things….” I think what will make or break this pick is how Rivera uses English. Considering we took English first, passing up a number of need positions, is a sign that they’re trying to give Rivera anything he wants to work with.

BTW, I’m still shocked that Mike Brown has not been signed and is not being linked to the Chargers. He at least has to be a camp invitee, right?

"I did not invent the wheel, I was the crooked spoke adjacent." - Aesop Rock

by John (obviousman) on Apr 27, 2009 7:29 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Kipper gave the pick a C+

but he said that every pick the Chargers could have made would have been a luxury pick so they really could not have done much better. Berman looked a little baffled by it though.

by Steve (Grey Suit) on Apr 27, 2009 7:39 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think all our faces looked just like Berman’s when the pick came down… I know mine probabl did.

by Stephen (shaynes41) on Apr 27, 2009 10:05 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Kiper's comments (gave us a C+ for the entire draft)

The selection of linebacker Larry English at No. 16 was a little high, but he fills a potential need for them and he’s a good player. Guards Louis Vasquez and Tyronne Green were good selections in the third and fourth rounds. Defensive tackle Vaughn Martin was a bit of a reach in the fourth round because he played in Canada against a lower level of competition. The late-round picks of running back Gartrell Johnson, cornerback Brandon Hughes, safety Kevin Ellison and wide receiver Demetrius Byrd were all good picks.

"I did not invent the wheel, I was the crooked spoke adjacent." - Aesop Rock

by John (obviousman) on Apr 27, 2009 12:44 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs